When Lin Yuan arrived at the entrance, the doorway of Rice Flower Fragrance was already surrounded by a crowd eager for a spectacle.
Lin Yuan massaged her forehead. All this fuss for merely opening a shop—it hadn’t been long, and already so many things had happened!
The one causing a scene at the door was none other than Meng Chunyan, who had just had her carriage damaged. To be precise, it wasn’t damaged by someone else; she had attempted to crash into another, but ended up crashing herself instead.
Meng Chunyan’s carriage had lost a wheel, but fortunately, the coachmen had their repair tools with them and managed to reattach it somewhat. However, just as Meng Chunyan was about to climb aboard, the wheel came off with a clatter. Halted mid-climb by this unexpected development, she panicked, her body tilting, and she fell off.
Now she was really in a state: her hair disheveled, her clothes wrinkled, and her face now covered in a layer of dust, having also twisted her foot. This infuriated her, and she insisted on settling accounts with Lin Yuan.
The Maid saw her in this state and wanted to persuade her to go home and change her clothes, but Meng Chunyan’s stubbornness prevailed. She wouldn’t even believe the Maid, who said if she took a look at her disheveled appearance in a mirror, she probably wouldn’t be so impulsive and cause such a fuss.
The coachmen trailed behind, again barely managing to fix the wheel, trying to have her sit inside the carriage. But remembering how she was thrown out just before, she refused to get in, dead set against it. So, she continued on toward Rice Flower Fragrance, limping with her messy hair and smudged face.
Her carriage mishap had already drawn enough attention, but her current state, oblivious to shame, attracted even more curious onlookers who followed her, eager to see the spectacle unfold.
Lin Yuan looked at Meng Chunyan’s bedraggled state and couldn’t help but chuckle.
This chuckle was caught by Meng Chunyan, who, in a fit of rage, pointed at Lin Yuan and began to curse without any evidence, "Lin Yuan, you lowly wretch, you country bumpkin! You had your coachmen damage my carriage and now you laugh at my misfortune! I demand you compensate for my carriage, hmph! If you don’t, I will just stay right here and not leave!"
With that, she sat down on the steps at the entrance of Rice Flower Fragrance, much like a village woman would, and indeed she did not budge. Under normal circumstances, she would never compromise her image by sitting in the street, but today her foot hurt after limping an entire street, and she was too exhausted. Whether it was a high-backed chair or a filthy ground, as long as she could sit, she didn’t care anymore.
The Maid’s face was flushed with embarrassment, and she pulled at her arm, trying to lift her up, but Meng Chunyan brushed her off to the side, "Why are you pulling me? I’m not leaving! Unless she gives me a satisfactory explanation, I won’t go anywhere today!"
Lin Yuan looked at her amusingly, then at the damaged carriage stopped at the entrance. Because of the collision, one wheel was hanging crookedly, showing signs of splitting. The carriage body also looked battered, having lots of paint chipped off. If Meng Chunyan hadn’t said the carriage was new, many would have thought it was an old carriage that had been used for years.
Moreover, it was actually an old one.
Seeing Lin Yuan silent, just looking at her carriage, Meng Chunyan hmphed, "This carriage was bought for me by my elder brother in Yecheng. I’ve barely had it for half a month! Look, all of you look, what has she turned it into? Huh? Everyone, tell me, doesn’t she owe me a new one?"
The onlookers, many of whom didn’t understand the situation, but also some who had followed from the main street, now responded with various comments upon hearing her claim.